Induction Year: 2003

The teams from the 1949-50 school year for East Grand Rapids High School won four state championships in basketball, swimming, golf and track and field to set in motion a collection of 137 state championship achievements for the school through the 2019 school year.
The four state titles of the 49-50 class were won by teams made up of male athletes because females beyond club groups were not included in Michigan High School Athletic Association team structures until the 1970s.
Weldon Fase was the coach of both the swimming and golf champions that year.
The 1950 swim team won what was then labeled the Class B-C-D state title, finishing ahead of Ypsilanti Central in the MHSAA state championship meet. It was the third consecutive for the program under Fase starting from 1948 and set off a run of 15 consecutive state titles for the swim program from 1948-1962.
Fase’s golf team won what was then labeled the Class C-D state championship, topping Grosse Point St. Paul in the state championship tournament. The golf team repeated as state champions in 1951.
Reed Waterman was the coach of the track and field team in 1950. They won the Class C state title by finishing ahead of Milan in the state championship meet. It was one of six state titles won by the track and field teams at East between 1940 and 1958, and they are the only six won by the track and field program in school history. All were coached by Waterman.
East Grand Rapids has won just one state title in basketball and that was in 1950. John Hoekje was the coach and the Pioneers won the Class C title by topping Saginaw Saints Peter & Paul 64-48 in the state championship game. Rusty Swaney scored a then finals-game record 27 points to lead the Pioneers.
When the 1949-50 teams at East were inducted in 2003 the teams at East had captured 96 state championships in 13 sports. Since, through 2019, the East teams have added 41 for a total of 137 in 17 sports.
The most titles have been won by the boy’s swim program with 25 since 1948, and the girl’s swim program with 23 since 1978. Girl’s tennis with 17 and boy’s tennis with 16 round out the top four programs. The celebrated football program has won 11 state titles. Football titles were not determined by playoffs until 1975.
See a complete list at egrathletics.org.